Undaria pinnifitida (wakame) and Laminaria japonica (kombu) are cultivated “marine vegetables.” Historically considered plants, they are actually chromistans. Both are members of the same family of brown algae. Both are distributed worldwide in cool waters. Laminaria (Kombu) and Undaria (Wakame) are the most popularly consumed brown marine vegetables.*

Wakame and Kombu were originally obtained from wild crops - today by large-scale cultivation methods. The entire sterile (asexual) leaf is consumed.

Both brown marine vegetables are used as soup stock, in salads, boiled as a vegetable, dried as a snack food, or soaked in soy sauce and served as a seasoning or garnish for rice dishes. Wakame is marketed in a dried and salted state for long preservation. Brown seaweeds are considered very healthy and are widely consumed for their reputed medicinal potential as well as their culinary value. One of the compounds unique to brown seaweed is fucoxanthin. Fucoxanthin is a carotenoid pigment in Wakame and Kombu, which also contain violoxanthin, neoxanthin, and chlorophyll. Brown seaweeds are rich in n-3 fatty acids such as ω-3 18:3-α-linolenic acid and ω-3 20:5 eicosapentaenoic acid.

* For some tasty recipes with brown seaweeds, try epicurious.com’s Seaweed Salad and Udon with Mushroom Broth, Cabbage, and Yams